Theta Sigma

The Doctor's lack of a name makes it tricky to write romantic fanfic - surely Rose/Romana/Karl/OFC is not going to murmur "Oh, Doctor" as he pushes her roughly against the console and rips the thin silk from her umbrella. Ergo, lots of fanfic writers have latched onto "Theta Sigma", the Doctor's nickname from school, which is mentioned very briefly in a couple of stories: The Armageddon Factor and The Happiness Patrol.

There are a number of problems with using "Theta" as the Doctor's "real" name. For a start, his old schoolmate Drax calls him "Theet", not "Theta". We don't know whether it was an affectionate nickname or a nasty one, like "Stinky" or something. The Doctor coldly tells Drax to call him "Doctor", not "Theet", but it's not clear why: maybe it's rude or disrespectful, maybe it will be confusing to the viewer, maybe Drax is just annoying the heck out of him. (He doesn't like being called "Doc", either!)

There's no evidence that the Doctor hated the nickname. In The Happiness Patrol he's quite cheerful about mentioning it to a complete stranger. Importantly, Drax is the only character ever to call the Doctor "Theet" - none of his other schoolmates do so, nor do any of his close friends, which makes it stick out like a sore thumb in the fanfic. (Come to think of it, this probably means it doesn't mean "Stinky", or the Master would be using it like a shot.)

I think romantic fanfic can safely get away with having the Doctor's beloved call him "Doctor" - when it's said by his beloved, it becomes a intimate name, just as when it's said by his enemies it becomes a name to hate and fear.

(no subject)

Teeeeeeeeeeensy bit surprised that so few people caught the tone of my posting about "chavs". I'd just been reading about the current British panic about "happy slapping". One news item mentioned a school where "chav" dress has been banned, and I immediately thought of the horror of "Goth control" in the US after Columbine. Schools will do anything to avoid having to actually tackle bullying.

It's no use citing Little Britain's Vicky as an example, any more than it would be useful citing Are You Being Served?'s Mr Humphries as an example of a gay man. They are parodies. Moreover, I've only seen Vicky briefly, but her "Yeah but no but yeah" routine made me laugh because it sounds like the Australian "Yeah no" - like much British comedy of the moment I'm afraid the local references go over my head. (Erm, I do have the right character there, don't I?)

In recent years I've become rather painfully aware of my own prejudices when it comes to class. Nice people do not speak loudly in grating accents on public transport. In fact, a good Anglo middle class woman such as myself - able to get away with not being able to find her train ticket because of her obvious respectability - attempts to become as invisible as possible. The ghastly truth is that there's a mean little voice in my head which has a go at pretty much everyone I see. I don't quite know where that came from, although I suspect the accumulated trauma of years of harassment at school.

Rather than trying to work out which box to put people in ("omg is Rose a chav???") I prefer to use more direct language. As a few folks have pointed out, the background and appearance of someone who attacks a stranger, physically or verbally, for amusement is irrelevant. They are a thug, a boor, a bully, a criminal, an idiot. I'm supposed to shrink from young men of Middle Eastern appearance and boys of any description wearing hoodies; but instead it's girls in school uniforms who, to this day, make my belly clench and my teeth sharpen.

Bernice Summerfield trivium

It's the sort of thing that can drive you mad. I'm sure that, in one of the Doctor Who books involving Benny, or in one of the spin-off novels, there was a mention of an adventure TV show of the future - her time's equivalent of Young Indiana Jones or something like that. Do you think I can remember where the reference was, or what the show's name was??? It was probably in one of my books for heaven's sake! I will send e-chocolate to anyone who can find the bloody thing.